Low profile portable exercise machine with dual resistance

ABSTRACT

An exercise device comprising a foot carriage slidably mounted on tracks, the tracks are held together parallel to one another and dual magnetic and elastic resistance elements provide opposition against the relative motion of the foot carriage. The foot carriage can be a frame carrying wheels and straddle mounted by a frame structure composed of hat shaped beams for which low-profile footrests are pivotally mounted.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims benefit of Design Patent Application Ser. No. 29/754,565, hereby incorporated by reference.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Field of the Invention

This invention relates to exercise devices, specifically to devices that can be placed under a desk with more clearance between knees and desk for exercise of the lower body from a sitting position. This device will also allow for using magnetic and elastic resistance during exercise. It can be used while working, watching TV or involved in other activities.

Background of the Invention

The present invention is an improvement upon the U.S. Pat. No. 8,894,551. The foot carriage comprises, a footrest frame made from a plurality of hat shaped beams connected to each other by cross beam to form a rigid structure on which a pair of footrests are mounted pivotally. The footrest frame straddles a wheeled carriage frame enabling the footrests to be mounted as low as possible to the ground, thereby allowing the user to have more clearance between knees and desk during exercise. The footrests can rotate between horizontal and vertical positions. Where footrests at the horizontal position can be considered as low-profile footrests. However, the foot support in U.S. Pat. No. 8,894,551. is above the wheeled carriage frame. Another improvement is in the resistance to movement of the foot carriage along the track assembly, where both magnetic and elastic resistance can be leveraged at the same time. Two design possibilities for magnetic resistance assembly are offered in the present invention. The first option is magnets are fixed to the foot carriage and a reaction bar made from a conduction material is vertically movable to adjust the air gap for varying the resistance. The second option is a fixed reaction bar to the track assembly but a vertically movable magnet system. In both options the reaction bar is located between the two the tracks and below the foot carriage to save space and have compact design. In both options, a plurality of magnets located longitudinally beneath the wheeled carriage frame are attached to a magnet holder which has a dual function to carry the magnets and also restrain the elastic element to the foot carriage by squeezing a small portion of the elastic element under a pressure plate for which the pressure is controlled by a cap nut. Varying the elastic resistance is by varying the length of the elastic element between the retrained portion and the fixed ends at end caps. In the first option, the magnet holder is fixed to foot carriage but in the second option, it is movable through a mechanism driven by adjusting a knob on a foot carriage, thereby adjusting the magnetic resistance.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The exercise device of the present invention comprises a foot carriage constrained to roll in a forward and backward motion. The foot carriage is slidably mounted within tracks and comprises a pair of low-profile footrests for receiving a user's feet. A dual resistance: magnetic and elastic is provided to impede the foot carriage movement within a pair of tracks. A sensor attached to a reaction bar for counting the strides by using an LCD screen display meter,

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a top perspective of one embodiment of the exercise device;

FIG. 2 is an exploded view of one embodiment of the exercise device;

FIG. 3 is top perspective sectional view illustrating the dual resistance assembly within the whole exercise device and with one track removed for one embodiment of the exercise device;

FIG. 4 is a sectional view illustrating the dual resistance assembly of one embodiment of the exercise device;

FIG. 5 is a top perspective of a sectional view illustrating the dual resistance assembly of one embodiment of the exercise device;

FIG. 6 is a sectional view of one embodiment of the exercise device with air gap adjustment by a wheel at small air gap and with one track removed;

FIG. 7 is a sectional view of one embodiment of the exercise device with air gap adjustment by a wheel at large air gap and with one track removed;

FIG. 8 is a sectional view of second embodiment of the exercise device with air gap adjustment by a knob at small air gap and with one track removed;

FIG. 9 is a front or rear view of one embodiment of the exercise device with the end cap removed;

FIG. 10 is a bottom perspective of view of one embodiment of the foot carriage;

FIG. 11 is an exploded top perspective view of one embodiment of the footrest;

FIG. 12 is a perspective view of second embodiment of the footrest frame;

FIG. 13 is a perspective sectional view illustrating the reaction bar, threaded shaft through the endcap wall;

FIG. 14 is a perspective sectional view illustrating the reaction bar, adjusting tension wheel with threaded shaft through the bottom endcap wall;

FIG. 15 is a top perspective view of a second embodiment of the exercise device;

FIG. 16 is a front or rear view of a second embodiment of the exercise device with one footrest folded upward;

FIG. 17 is a top perspective exploded view of a second embodiment of the exercise device;

FIG. 18 is a top perspective of a sectional view illustrating the dual resistance assembly of second embodiment of the exercise device;

FIG. 19 is a sectional view illustrating the dual resistance assembly of second embodiment adjusted at large air gap;

FIG. 20 is a sectional view illustrating the dual resistance assembly of second embodiment adjusted at small air gap;

FIG. 21 is a top perspective view of a third embodiment of the exercise device;

FIG. 22 is a top perspective exploded view of a third embodiment of the exercise device;

FIG. 23 is a top perspective of a sectional view illustrating the magnetic resistance assembly of third embodiment of the exercise device;

FIG. 24 is a sectional view illustrating the magnetic resistance assembly of third embodiment adjusted at small air gap;

FIG. 25 is a sectional view illustrating the magnetic resistance assembly of third embodiment adjusted at large air gap;

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

While the present disclosure may be susceptible to embodiment in different forms, there is shown in the drawings, and herein will be described in detail, an embodiment with the understanding that the present description is to be considered an exemplification of the principles of the disclosure and is not intended to limit the disclosure to the details of construction and arrangements of components set forth in the following description or illustrated in the drawing.

A preferred embodiment of the exercise device 10 of the present invention is illustrated in FIGS. 1-14. The device 10 comprises tracks 20, a foot carriage 22 slidably mounted within the tracks 20, a pair of end caps 24 fastened at the ends of tracks 20 to keep the tracks parallel to each other.

In one embodiment, the foot carriage 22 comprising a carriage frame 28 with first end and second end and having a plurality of wheels 104, 105 rotatably mounted thereto in such a manner as to enable the foot carriage 22 to roll along the tracks 20, a dual resistance assembly 148, and a foot support assembly 35. The dual resistance assembly 148 comprises a magnet holder 151 attached to the carriage frame 28 or can be integral with the frame 28, a plurality of magnets 150, a magnet holding plate 153, a pressure plate 52, and an elastic resistance element 26. The magnet holder having a hat shaped cross section with curved peaks 62 like dog ears and secures longitudinally to the magnet holding plate 153 by means of screws or by any other fastening method. The magnet holder has also a bottom threaded cylindrical shape 54 to receive a nut for fastening and securing to the carriage frame 28 and a top portion consisting externally threaded cylinder with a longitudinal slot 56. The magnet holding plate 153 has a rectangular shape and holds a plurality of magnets 150 having north poles and south poles laid alternately to generate a magnetic force against the reaction bar 159 to produce resistance when the foot carriage is moving within the tracks 20. The reaction bar 159 is a rectangular beam made of a conductive material such as aluminum or copper where Eddy currents are induced to create a magnetic field that opposes to the magnetic field produced by the moving magnets 150. As a result, a greater resistance is generated to oppose the moving foot carriage 22. One end of the reaction bar 159 is adjustably attached to a first end of end cap 24 while the second end of the reaction bar 159 is adjustably attached to a second end of end cap 24. In one embodiment, each end of the reaction bar 159 has a threaded hole 58 and located between the bottom wall 76 and horizontal rib 82 in the end cap 24. An adjusting tension wheel 44 with a threaded shaft extends upward through the bore 77 in the bottom wall 76 and into a threaded hole 58 in the reaction bar 159, then into the bore 84 in the horizontal rib 82. The end of the threaded shaft is held by a cotter pin or any other method not shown. Turning of the wheel 44 translates into a vertical motion of the end of the reaction bar 159. As a result, when both the wheels 44 at each end cap are adjusted then the whole reaction bar 159 is raised as in figure FIG. 6 or lowered as in FIG. 7 in order to reduce or increase the air gap 164 between the magnets 150 and the reaction bar 159. In another embodiment in FIG. 8, the adjusting knob 42 with threaded shaft extends downward from a bore 78 in the top wall 74 of the end cap 24, then into the treaded hole 58 in the reaction bar 159 and then into the bore 77 at the bottom wall 76 of the end cap 24. Turning each knob 42 will control the vertical position of the reaction bar and thereby air gap 164 to change the magnetic resistance to the moving foot carriage 22. An additional resistance is achieved through the elastic element 26 for which one end of the resistance element 26 is releasably attached to the first end cap 24 while the second end of the resistance element 26 is releasably attached to the second end cap 24. The middle portion 80 of the elastic element 26 is laid on top of the curved peaks 62 of the magnet holder. The middle portion 80 of the elastic element 26 is pressed against the curved peaks 62 of the magnet holder 151 by the pressure plate 52. The pressure is generated by turning and tightening a flanged cap nut 43 which comes in contact with the pressure plate 52. The flanged cap nut 43 threads into the top portion of magnet holder 151 and keeps the footrest board 30 attached to the carriage frame 28. The tension of the resistance element 26 can be controlled by increasing or reducing the length of the portion of the resistance element 26 between the pressure point 60 and the end cap 24. The remaining unstretched portion of resistance element 26 can be stored in the slot 56 of the threaded cylindrical top portion of the magnet holder 151.

The foot support sub-assembly 35 comprises footrest board 30, footrest frame 32, and a pair of footrests 23 for right and left foot. The footrest board 30 is a one-piece rigid or semi rigid construction having a top portion and a bottom portion 50 that engages with the carriage frame 28.

The top portion comprises a plurality of housings 70 with cross section in the form of a lower half circle or rectangle laid along the width of the footrest board 30 to engage with beam caps 72 which are rigid or semi rigid construction pieces and have cross section in the form of an upper half circle or rectangle. A cut 112 in the middle of the housing 70 to make room for a fabric handle 47 to go through for carrying the unit as shown FIG. 21. the lower half housings and the upper half beam caps 70,72 form a circular opening for holding the footrest frame 32. The footrest frame 32 includes a plurality of hat shaped rigid beams or tubes 62, each having two side arms 66 extending horizontally and a middle portion 68. The beams 62 are interconnected by cross tubular beams 64 above the side arms 66 to create a substantial rigid structure for supporting the footrests 23. The footrest frame 32 straddles the footrest board 30 and the middle portions 68 of the beams are clamped between the lower half housings 70 and the upper half beam caps 72. Fasteners are used to connect the beam caps 72 and the footrest frame 32 to the footrest board 30. The tubular beams 64 are connected to the hat shaped beams 62 by welding as in FIG. 12 or by connectors using screws, bolts, or rivets in shown FIG. 2.

The footrest sub-assembly 23 comprises mainly of a foot plate 86 and half circle groove 88,89 along the side and length of the foot plate 86. The foot plate 86 contains a plurality of ribs and cross ribs at the bottom to form a substantial structural rigidity for increased stiffness. Hinge caps 90,91 are rigid or semi rigid construction pieces in the form of half circle cylindrical tubes. Hinge caps 90,91 are attached to the foot plate 86 at the grooves 88,89 by fasteners to form a circular opening around the tubular beams 64 and create a hinge for the foot rest to rotatably mount to the footrest frame 32. The foot rest 23 can be rotated to have the grooves 46 in the foot plate 86 engage with the side arms 66 of the footrest frame 32 to restrain the rotary movement of the foot rest 23 in the horizontal position. The foot rest can be folded upward when the unit is not in use as in FIG. 16. The hat shape and straddle mounting of the footrest frame 32 on the footrest board 30 enable the footrests 23 to be mounted as low as possible to the ground, thereby allowing the user to have more clearance with a desk during exercise.

Referring now to FIGS. 15-20, in different embodiments, the resistance sub-assembly 92 comprising a magnet holder 152, magnet holder guide 154, magnetic holding plate 153, plurality of magnets 150, reaction bar 159, an adjusting tension knob 42, and an elastic resistance element not shown. The magnet holder 152 having a length and width is one piece shaped as a hat with a center cylindrical portion mounted slidably within the magnet holder guide 154. The magnet holder guide 154 has inverted U-shaped cross section with curved peaks 62 like dog ears to serve as pressure points when the elastic element is squeezed between the curved peaks 62 and magnet holder. The adjusting knob 42 with threaded shaft extends downward from the bore 94 in the flanged cap nut 43, then into a threaded insert 96 in the magnet holder 152 or into an internally threaded bore integral to the magnet holder 152. The magnet holding plate 153 having a plurality of magnets 150 laid in an alternate manner as north and south poles to create a magnetic force. The magnet holding plate 153 is attached to the magnet holder 152 by means of fasteners or other appropriate method. Turning the knob 42 for magnetic resistance adjustment drives the whole sub assembly magnet holder 152, magnetic holding plate 153, and magnets 150 in a vertical motion to control the air gap 164 between the magnets 150 and the reaction bar 159. The magnet holder guide 154 is attached to the carriage frame 28 and serves as a guide during the vertical travel of magnet holder 152. The reaction bar 159 is fixed and attached to the end caps means of screws or any other fastening method. One end of reaction bar 159 is attached to a first end cap 24, similarly, the other end of reaction bar 159 attached to a second end cap 24.

Referring now to FIGS. 21-25, in an alternative embodiment, the magnetic resistance sub-assembly 98 comprising of a base arm 158, magnet arm 156, plurality of magnets 150, reaction bar 159, plunger 168, connecting piece 170, and an adjusting tension knob 42. The plunger 168 is one-piece rigid or semi rigid construction in a shape of a rectangular cube with internally threaded bore. The adjusting knob 42 with threaded shaft extends downward from the bore 100 in the footrest board 30, then into a threaded bore integral to the plunger 168. The base arm having a shape of the letter L where the long arm is the base arm 158 which is attached to the carriage frame 28 by fasteners and the short arm 104 pointing downward. The magnet arm 156 is on piece of rigid construction where first end is rotatably mounted to the short arm 104 at the pivot 106 and the second end having a cut is slidably connected to the connecting piece 170. The long arm 102 has a square opening 108 located at one end from which the plunger 168 travels vertically. The connecting piece 170 is one-piece rigid or semi rigid construction with the pivot 110 at one end to and two grooves 112 at the other end. The plunger 168 is connected pivotally at the pivot 110 to the connecting piece 170 which is slidably mounted to the magnet arm 156 at the grooves 112. The knob 42 adjustment drives vertically the plunger 168 to pull or push the connecting piece 170. As a result, the magnet arm 156 pivots upwardly or downwardly. Thereby, controlling the gap 164 between the magnet arm 156 and the reaction bar 159.

FIGS. 6,7 show a sensor 116 attached to the reaction bar 159 and connected through wire 118 to using an LCD screen display meter 40 for counting the strides during the exercise.

FIG. 15 shows a cross bar 53 slidably mounted beneath the tracks 20 to allow for varied inclined positions of the exercise device. The cross bar is mounted to tracks by means screws that thread into square nuts which can slide when untightened along square channels 120 integral to the tracks 20 as in FIG. 9.

While the preferred embodiment of the invention has been illustrated and described, it will be appreciated that various changes, adaptations and modifications may be made therein without departing from the spirit of the invention. 

I claim:
 1. An exercise device, comprising: a) A track assembly comprising a plurality of tracks each having a first end, a second end, and a length, where the tracks are held parallel to one another by endcaps; b) A foot carriage comprises a carriage frame with first end and second end and having a plurality of wheels mounted thereto in such a manner as to enable said foot carriage to roll along said track assembly; c) A foot support assembly comprises footrest board having a width and a length for which a bottom portion engages with said carriage frame and a top portion carries a footrest frame which have a pair of footrest assemblies pivotably mounted thereto in such a manner as to enable the footrest assemblies to rotate between a low-profile horizontal position and an upward position; d) A dual resistance assembly comprises magnetic and elastic resistance elements to impede the movement of the foot carriage along the track assembly; e) A cross bar slidably mounted beneath the tracks to allow for variable inclined positions of the exercise device.
 2. The exercise device of claim 1 in which the footrest frame is a structure having a plurality of hat shaped rigid beams that are spaced apart, each hat shaped beam has two side arms extending horizontally and a middle portion.
 3. The exercise device of claim 2 in which the hat shaped rigid beams are interconnected by a plurality of cross tubular beams at a point located above said side arms to create a substantial rigid structure with first end and second end.
 4. The exercise device of claim 1 in which the top portion of said footrest board comprises a plurality of housings with cross section in the form of a lower half circle or rectangle laid along the width of said footrest board to engage beam caps with cross section in the form of an upper half circle or rectangle.
 5. The exercise device of claim 1 in which the footrest frame straddles said footrest board such that said middle portions of the hat shaped beams are clamped between the lower half housings and the upper half beam caps. Fasteners are used to connect the beam caps and the lower half housings of said support footrest frame.
 6. The exercise device of claim 1 in which the footrest assembly comprises a flat plate and hinge caps which are rigid separate pieces in the form of half circle cylindrical tubes. The flat plate having a length and a width is shaped to receive the user's foot and integral with longitudinal grooves in the form of lower half circle located on one side. Furthermore, the flat plate contains a plurality of ribs and cross ribs at the bottom to form a structural rigidity for increased stiffness. The hinge caps are attached to the flat plate at the grooves by fasteners to form a circular opening around the tubular beams and create a hinge for the footrest assembly to rotatably mount to the footrest frame.
 7. The exercise device of claim 1 in which the dual resistance assembly comprises a magnet holder attached to the carriage, a magnet holding plate, a plurality of magnets, a pressure plate, reaction bar, and an elastic resistance element.
 8. The exercise device of claim 7 in which the magnet holder has a length, a width and a hat shaped cross section with curved peaks like dog ears. In addition, the magnet holder has a bottom threaded cylindrical shape to receive a nut for fastening and holding to the carriage frame and a top portion consisting of an externally threaded cylinder with a longitudinal slot. The magnet holding plate has a rectangular shape and holds a plurality of magnets having north poles and south poles laid alternately to generate a magnetic force against the reaction bar to produce resistance when the foot carriage is moving within the tracks. The magnet holding plate is attached along the length to the magnet holder by screws or any other fastening method. The reaction bar with first end, second end, and having a rectangular shape made of a conductive material. The first end of the reaction bar is adjustably attached to a first end of end cap while the second end of the reaction bar is adjustably attached to a second end of end cap. Each end of the reaction bar having a threaded hole and located between two horizontal ribs in the end cap can be raised or lowered by means of a threaded shaft. The threaded shaft can be either attached to a tension wheel located below the end cap or attached to a knob located above the end cap.
 9. The exercise device of claim 7 in which the elastic element with a first end and a second end for which one end is releasably attached to the first end cap 24 while the second end is releasably attached to the second end cap. A middle portion of the elastic element is laid between the first end and the second end of the carriage frame and pressed against the curved peaks of the magnet holder by the pressure plate to squeeze the elastic resistance element at two pressure points. The pressure is generated by tightening a flanged cap nut which comes in contact with the pressure plate. The flanged cap nut threads into the top portion of magnet holder and keeps the footrest board platform attached to the carriage frame. The tension of the resistance element can be controlled by increasing or reducing the length of the elastic resistance element portion between the pressure points and the end caps. The remaining unstretched portion of elastic resistance element can be stored in the slot of the threaded cylindrical top portion of the magnet holder.
 10. The exercise device of claims 1 and 9 in which the magnetic resistance element comprising a magnet holder, magnet holder guide, magnetic holding plate, plurality of magnets, reaction bar, and an adjusting tension knob. The magnet holder having a length and width is one piece shaped as a hat with a center cylindrical portion mounted slidably to the magnet holder guide. The magnet holder guide has inverted U-shaped cross section with curved peaks like dog ears to serve as pressure points when the elastic element is squeezed between the curved peaks and magnet holder. Moreover, the magnet holder guide is attached to the carriage frame and serves as a guide during vertical travel of the magnet holder. The adjusting knob with threaded shaft extends downward from a bore on the flanged cap nut, then into a threaded insert in the magnet holder or into an internally threaded bore integral to the magnet holder. The magnet holding plate having a plurality of magnets laid in an alternate manner as north and south poles to create a magnetic force is attached along the length to the magnet holder by means of fasteners or other appropriate method. Turning the knob to adjust the magnetic resistance drives the magnet holder, magnetic holding plate, and magnets in a vertical motion to control air gap between the magnets and the reaction bar. The reaction bar is fixed and attached to the end caps by means of screws or any other fastening method. One end of reaction bar is attached to a first end cap, similarly, the other end of reaction bar attached to a second end cap.
 11. The exercise device of claim 1 in which the magnetic resistance element comprising of a base arm, magnet arm, plurality of magnets, reaction bar, plunger, connecting piece, and an adjusting tension knob. The plunger is one-piece construction in a shape of a rectangular cube with internally threaded bore. The adjusting knob with threaded shaft extends downward from a bore in the footrest board, then into a threaded bore integral to the plunger. The base arm having a shape of the letter L where the long arm is attached to the carriage frame by fasteners and the short arm pointing downward. The magnet arm is on piece construction where first end is rotatably mounted at a pivot at the end of the short arm and the second end having a cut is slidably connected to the connecting piece. The long arm has a square opening located at the end from which the plunger is slidably mounted. The connecting piece is one-piece with a pivot at one end and having two grooves at the other end. The plunger is connected pivotally to the connecting piece which is slidably mounted to the magnet arm at said grooves. Knob adjustment drives vertically the plunger to pull or push the connecting piece. As a result, the magnet arm pivots upwardly or downwardly. Thereby, controlling gap between the magnet arm and the reaction bar. 